


A Darker Shade of Red

by SevenCorvus



Series: Criminal Minds 50 Fanfic Challenge [1]
Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: Angst, Cutting, Dark, Gen, One Shot, Prompt Fic, Self-Harm
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-01-23
Updated: 2012-01-23
Packaged: 2017-10-30 01:12:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 352
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/326112
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SevenCorvus/pseuds/SevenCorvus
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's the color that first attracted you. A deep red color, becoming even darker as it dried. There is no confusing that color for anything else.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Darker Shade of Red

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the prompt: blood from a prompt table on 50 Fanfic Challenge. Feedback is love and will be rewarded with cookies (and smut).

It's almost funny when you think about it. Certainly, there is a twisted irony, one that almost makes you wonder if fate has a dark sense of humor. Not that you think about it that much. After all, it has become a habit so ingrained, that you have long since stopped questioning your need for it.

The team doesn't know, but then why would they. You've always been good at hiding your true thoughts and feelings behind what people expect. For all that they are profilers, they would rather let themselves be fooled by what they want to see, than look deeper for fear of what they might find. Not that any of them would ever admit, even to themselves, that there might be more to you than what you show. But there is, a lot more.

It's the color that first attracted you. A deep red color, becoming even darker as it dried. There is no confusing that color for anything else. The first time was completely by accident. You wrote it off as a fluke and put it out of your mind. The second time, well that was a little different. It could have been another accident, but you have to wonder if subconsciously you craved it even then. However it started, despite your genius and memory you've never been sure, it's long since developed into an obsession. One that regardless of your best efforts, you have never been able to break.

It's become such a driving force in your life, influencing your work, your mood, your state of mind. You see it nearly everyday at crime scenes, in pictures. You wonder how something that can give you such pleasure can cause others so much pain. You're drawn to it, the look, the feel, even the taste. It's a powerful reminder, a strong symbol of so much. You tell yourself that you're in control, refusing to admit that this is something that can never be controlled. You avoid it for days, weeks, but like an addict you inevitably return. Needing to see that color painted and dripping on your skin.


End file.
